German hackers fight electronic voting

It'll end in tears, warns Chaos

Veteran German hacking group the Chaos Computer Club is fighting the use of electronic voting machines in upcoming local elections.

A lawsuit filed by the group against the German state of Hesse seeks a temporary injunction against the use of electronic voting machines that would prevent their use in 27 January local elections. The legal action contends that NEDAP voting computers due to be used in the count in eight districts are insecure and "susceptible to manipulation".

"Recourse to the court has become necessary since the Hesse state government evidently does not have the required expert knowledge to understand the technical security and transparency flaws of the voting machines, nor the will to act accordingly," the Chaos Computer Club explains.

Additional security measures added by the Hesse Ministry of the Interior to address concerns about the integrity of votes tallied using NEDAP voting computers are insufficient, the hackers argue. 45,000 people have signed its petition to reject e-voting machines.

Chaos Computer Club's legal offensive follows a successful attempt by Dutch hackers in banning the same type of NEDAP voting machines in the Netherlands. A Dutch judge last year ruled the use of 9,000 Nedap e-voting machines in recent Dutch elections unlawful because of a lack of adequate authorisation. Results compiled using the machine were, however, allowed to stand. The decision was hailed as a victory for the Dutch "we don't trust voting computers" foundation. ®